Archive for category: personal

Earlier this month, we kicked off Summer with a family camping trip to Paulina Lake in Central Oregon. Lured by tales of a dig-your-own hot-spring, we spent two days hiking, relaxing, and soaking up the sun. We were successful in finding the hot-spring–an underground spring that bubbles up through the gravels at the shore of the lake–and, lucky for us, found the hard work of digging it out already done! We still had our work cut out for us in keeping it bearable by tempering the heat with buckets of cold lake water. By the end of the trip, Leland became a marshmallow-roasting pro, and was surprisingly gifted at lounging in the hammock. It must be hereditary . . .

Five years ago today, the skies briefly parted as we shared our vows to each other, barefoot in the sand, at Gleneden Beach on the Oregon Coast. As photographers who have photographed hundreds of weddings, we decided to keep things fairly non-traditional. Everyone else was also barefoot at the ceremony, which included 20 of our close family and friends gathered around us in a circle. Before the vows & rings to make it “official”, we silently enjoyed the sounds of the waves and ocean breeze swirling around us as one-by-one each person in attendance shared a little about what was on their hearts that moment. Oh, there were tears… Joelle was a comparative rock as Ryan blubbered his way through his vows leaving everyone else choked up when he finally finished!

Stella, our pup, ran free on the beach decked out in a pink Dupioni ribbon that just so happened to match Joelle’s dress from local Portland designer Lena Medoyeff. We love weddings of all shapes & sizes, but this small group on the beach was very “us”. The next day we hosted a proper celebration on an oak-strewn hillside above Carlton in the Yamhill Valley. That part is a bit more of a blur… in the best way possible. Lots of smiling faces and great conversation over delicious local food, tasty beer, good wine, and an assortment of fruit pies from a bakery in McMinnville with Tillamook ice cream! In retrospect, we probably should have followed tradition a bit more and kept one of those pies in the freezer like a traditional cake top. So good.

Five years can go by in a flash. As we slow down today to enjoy each other and reflect back, we are struck with the intense certainty of our love as we proclaimed it that day, and the true blessing that we found one another in the first place.

We hope you enjoy a few of our favorite Holga photos from 5 years ago today!

This is a special image for us in so many ways! My brother and new sister-in-law Brooke emerge from the pool with a mixture of joy and pure exhilaration on their faces after Matt was tossed in by a dozen guys (half of which ended up in the pool as well) & Brooke jumped in after him. These are the fleeting moments frozen in time that fuel & inspire us as photographers.